92 hatchback; what to do

alright here is my dilemma. i did a b18b1 swap in my hatch. I found out that the block was cracked at the drivers side motor mount. I am getting my old d15z1 back and this is where i am stuck. i found another b18 for $750, a tranny for $150 then i will have to buy the other stuff like clutch, half shafts ect., I also found a b16 short block and tranny for $450 then i can buy the b18 top end (head, manifolds ect.) and then bolt it to the b16 block, or turbo the d15. my question is , what do you all think would be the better way to go? thanx for all the future help.

Why would you need to buy a complete B-series swap if you already had a B18 in there previously? You should have a transmission already, no?

Also, I would advise against buying the B16 block (it's just called a block actually, "short block" refers to an entire engine minus accessories) and mating it to the B18 head. That's the absolute worst combination of those two motors...

i may not have made it completely clear, I bought the whole swap (motor, trans, harness, ect.) and i have to return it and i will be getting my old motor, trans harness ect. back and the additional cash i had to pay. but i can buy the b18 head back, if i decide to go the route of the b16 block and b18 head.

You're right about short block vs long block thing. I don't know what I was thinking there, sorry about that. I can't believe I messed that up; I wrote an FAQ article on that very subject for a different forum. Anyway, I understand your situation better now too...

I'd still advice against the B18 head/B16 block combo though. Like I said, you're getting the worst part of those two motors with that setup, unless you're talking about a GS-R or Type R head, but I'm thinking you said an LS head, correct?

How much power are you looking for here? And what's your intent for the car? Daily driver? Weekend warrior? Track whore?

yes, you are corect about the LS head. As far as power I havn't pinpoinnted a number but i would like to eventually get between 200 and 300 horse. i know i am not going to be able to make that much horse with just a swap or slaping on turbo but i would like to get there eventually. My intentions for the car is a DD but i would like to be able to take it to the track and play a little on some weekends.

Ok then. Yeah, I'd definitely recommend against the LS head on a B16 block. That's like worst case scenario. The LS head flows the worst out of all the B-series heads, plus you'd be losing displacement (which is one advantage that the LS has over the smaller B16s). If you do end up doing it, I'd at least look into some machine work on the head to improve it's flow capabilities.

It is possible to hit 300 wheel horse on an essentially stock B-series motor with good tuning. To do it on a D-series though, you should probably build the motor...